


Quarantine

by SunshineWrites



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/M, Kidge - Freeform, M/M, Multi, Smut, kidgance - Freeform, klance, plance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-08
Updated: 2019-02-08
Packaged: 2019-10-24 15:42:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17707052
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SunshineWrites/pseuds/SunshineWrites
Summary: Keith, Lance, and Pidge go on a mission to a bio-weapon lab hidden on a jungle world.  While there, Pidge steals some alien spores and gets herself a fungal brain infection that requires her to be quarantined until either they die or she loses her mind. Keith and Lance need to work with Coran to work up a cure while taking turns administering a... temporary treatment to try and keep Pidge from losing her sanity. Jealousy, a confusing love triangle, and a lot of horny teenager bullshit ensues.Note, not marked as Underage: some people avoid Pidge smut because she's canonically like 15 at the beginning of the show. Sexual acts described in later chapters of this story are perfectly legal in my country of residence. Not apologizing, not pulling punches. Don't like it, don't read. Cheers, fuckers.





	Quarantine

Most of the time, Galra on uninhabited planets was bad news. This was a given. But Galra, without any ships to be found, mucking about in the canopy of an endless jungle?  
  
Major bad news, especially for Voltron. Shiro cleared his throat, and the team crowded around the center console, where he pulled up a map of the planet and zoomed in on a lake. "Alright team we have a slight issue. This planet was formerly a wildlife preserve under Altean protection, but the Blade intel Keith brought in tells us they've got a hidden weapons lab under this saltwater lake. The lab is totally shielded from scanning, but this means it's only able to communicate through a supply ship that shows up once a phoeb, unloads supplies, loads up whatever's ready to be taken back to HQ, refuels and leaves."  
  
"The ship is operated entirely by sentries, so there'll be a brief window where it will drop out of warp-speed: you'll board it with drop-sleds and hide in an airlock. Once it enters the base, you two will escort Pidge to the computer room, where she'll scrub their database. Then, Keith, you'll plant explosives here, here, and here," The map of the facility made a PING sound as three little explosion icons flashed. "On the lower level. They'll each be on a VERY specific timer, so they won't go off until the ship has left for Galra HQ, giving the Voltron Coalition a whole phoeb to set up defenses, dig out the base, reclaim yet another planet from Zarkon's iron fist."  
  
The Black Paladin turned to face the trio. "Any questions?"  
  
Beside Katie, Lance raised a hand. "Yeah, just one. What am I doing?"  
  
Coran spoke up, "You're staying with Pidge and monitoring Keith via sonar. You'll be the one to guide Keith and open doors since we don't have a map of the lower level: it's locked up like you wouldn't believe, and he'll need eyes watching his back."

*Like the invisible maze...* Katie asked a question of her own. "How long do we have between entry and exit?"

Shiro and Coran glanced at each other, exchanging pained looks. Coran cleared his throat. "A varga,"

Shiro winced. Keith choked. Lance let out a scream of what could only be horror. "AN HOUR? HOW?? WHY???" Coran twirled his mustache. "Yeah, this base runs a tight ship. There's so much automation that it takes them no time at all to unload, load, and refuel. So there's kind of a tight rhythm to this operation. You can't afford any delays or you could throw the whole thing off. So stick to the plan and don't mess around, or you'll all be in a spot of trouble."

Keith swallowed whatever had gotten caught in his throat. "Right. When do we leave?" Shiro looked grim. "The ship'll be here in less than an hour. So go get suited up and meet me by the drop sleds in ten."

* * *

 "Is anyone else nervous about this?" Lance asked. Keith's reply was curt and tense. "Yeah." Katie shifted her grip on the Drop Sled's handles. "Focus, boys. It's a simple torch-and-burn mission: In and out, one varga. No distractions."

Coran's voice spoke up over the speakers: "Launching in five ticks... four... three... two... one... GO!" The airlocks opened with a scream, and the three Paladins went flying out. Katie glanced at her peripheral screens to make sure Lance and Keith were following her. The drop-sleds rounded the bend of the moon as the cargo ship slammed into view in typical Galra fashion.  
  
Boarding the ship was easy: The Drop-sleds stuck to the side, Katie hacked an airlock, and they hid inside. When the ship hit the water, Katie made eye contact with Lance. He nodded, his expression grim, but a small smirk crawling on nonetheless. Typical Lance. They were going in dark: no outside communication from here on out, and he could always crack a smile... and make her smile too.  
  
The ship slowly sank to the hangar, where the water around it drained through the floor. As the ship landed, the three of them made their way out of the airlock and behind a crane, while drones, sentries, and crane arms did their work unloading the cargo. Immediately, the Bayards came out. "Alright boys. We're in."

Keith blinked. "We know. We're right here."

Pidge started to say something, but caught herself. "Never mind, I just-- it's fun to say."

Lance's visor went dark. "OK. I'm in sonar mode. The patrol behind this door passes in three. Two. Now."

The three of them moved in strict formation: Keith was point-man, following the map the Blades had given them. Lance was rear guard, watching their backs for the other patrol on the lower hallway. The lab's upper floor consisted of a hangar in the center, a rectangular hallway around it, and two doors on opposite ends of the rectangle. One lead to the computer room, while the other lead down into the lower floor, where the labs were.

As they entered the computer room, Katie stepped right up to the terminal. "Alright. Beginning data-scrub." Her cartoonish avatar sped across the screen, Pac-Man-ing her way through folders and files as the data was copied and the originals deleted. Meanwhile, Lance hooked up to the terminal beside her, still in sonar mode, and turned to face Keith now that he had a view of the whole facility.

"Whoa. That lower floor is frickin' HUGE. OK Keith," He whispered, "The next patrol passes this door... now." Keith slipped out the door, and Lance continued to whisper instructions while checking for incoming guards. Katie's eyes wandered across the files in front of her. Most of the weapons seemed pretty standard: poisons, explosives, high-caliber plasma, nothing out of the ordinary. Until she did a double-take at one of the file names.

"The heck's a Kai... rah... spore?" A hiss filled the air and Katie turned to look. On the back wall, a section of the wall about the size of her laptop had sunken inwards to create a square cavity. "Voice activated..." She muttered, "Not a smart move, Zark."

She glanced back to Lance, who was giving Keith the door code and hadn't heard her. "I'm in," Keith muttered, "Huh. That is kinda fun to say." Katie maintained a casual tone as she sidled up to the little cavity.

"Right? Though it's best if you do it in that 1990's hacker voice." A cylinder rose up out of the bottom, containing a set of glass tubes, each containing a pale blue liquid that sparkled with little gold flakes. Lance muttered something about her being "so retro." His tone was approving, but she knew it was a jab, and so snickered a little.

As he continued giving Keith instructions, Katie reached out and took a vial, inspecting it. The golden things, presumably spores, moved in sync, floating slowly in some kind of pattern. Anyone else would have put it back, sealed it up, and come back for it once the base was taken. Unfortunately, the Green Paladin was a curious soul, one of, as Allura had put it, intellect and daring. She wanted a sample or two to inspect in the Castle labs, and was just reaching for a second vial to sneak out with her when--

"Pidge!"

The voices in her ears were harsh and quiet, but enough to make her fumble the vial for a second, and her heart scream into her throat. She turned. Lance's visor was back to normal. "Keith's done. Whatever you're doing, we gotta go. Now." He was done? How long had she been staring at these things? Did she black out? The scrub was supposed to take half an hour.

"Yeah. Got it. You go ahead, I'll be there." She stepped back to the terminal, where the scrub was already finished. She must have gotten lost in thought. That was it. Yeah.

Lance ran out the door as she pulled the data card. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw the spore samples. Somewhere deep in her little nerd heart, she felt a pang of need. She ran back and grabbed a second vial, and her thigh-plate popped open a space just big enough to fit them both. When Katie reached the ship, Keith and Lance were already in the airlock, holding the doors open. She dove in -too fast- and tumbled. Slammed into a drop-sled. Vision went black for a moment...

* * *

The ship lurched as it re-emerged into the lake, and Katie's vision cleared. Lance and Keith were kneeling in the airlock with her, looking concerned. the jungle was wheeling by in the window behind them. "You OK, Pidge?" Katie made a noise of confirmation and she forced herself to her feet.

"I'm fine. Just hit that drop sled kinda hard." She grabbed one and positioned herself for re-entry. "I'm fine," she insisted again, needlessly.

But for some reason, as they launched from the airlock, a feeling of dread settled in Katie's chest. Why did she feel like she was forgetting something? Even as the Galra ship vanished among the stars, even as they landed on the Castle, even as they celebrated that the mission had gone off without a hitch. She felt like she'd dropped something. As she was stripping out of her armor and hanging it up, her eyes wandered to the thigh-plate.

The spores!

She opened the little compartment and pulled the vials out. Still intact, and still doing that ominous swirling. She held the vials up to the light and smiled. "Oh-ho-ho," She chuckled, "I'm gonna have some fun with the two of you..." As she made her way to the lab, she continually checked behind her, sticking her head back out the door, looking down the hallway both way before slowly retreating into the lab and closing the door behind her.

"What are you doing?"

Katie spun and screamed, trying to throw a desperate punch while fumbling for the door controls again, only for her wrist to be caught by-- "Keith, what the hell?" They were uncomfortably close, and staring into his steely eyes was always too intense for her liking. What was the word for that? Something-opia, probably. "Don't sneak up on me like that, you nearly..." She trailed off, realizing he could see the vials.

Keith glanced at the contraband in her snared hand, let go of her arm and lowered his voice. "You OK? You seem tense, Pidge." She cleared her throat and shook her head. "I'm fine, I just-- I'm analyzing some samples and... wanted to be alone."

Keith didn't look convinced, but he gave her a curt pat on the shoulder. "Alright. I'll be on the training deck with Lance if you need me." As the door closed behind him, Katie had to wonder... "Wait, why was Keith in the lab?"

* * *

 "Wait, why were you in the lab?" Lance asked. Keith wasn't exactly a tech wiz like Hunk or Pidge.

Keith shrugged. "Bayard was acting up during the mission. I wanted to get Hunk to take a look, but he was busy so I kinda... hashed it out myself."

Lance nodded. That made sense. Keith was still a pretty hands-on guy. Though occasionally he wished he could be a little more hands-on with him, that was something of a vague pipe dream. He made a mental note to remember that pun.  
  
"Still," He mused, deflecting Keith's next strike with the end bit of his own sword, hearing the blade cut through the air just above his bare forearm. "Pidge is usually pretty quick to show off her," He paused, considering his word choice before he struck from below. "Brains."

"You think something's wro-AH!" Keith's sword swerved upwards as Lance's struck his side, closing the match in his favour. "Damn," He huffed in amusement, "You're getting better."

"Thanks," Lance flashed a smirk as they both relaxed their shoulders. "And, thanks for agreeing to teach me some sword moves, dude." he hefted the broadsword and gave it a twirl as it flashed back to its dormant form, "I feel like there's this vague disaster right around the corner and I need to be ready or it'll knock me off my feet." He paused, and when he didn't get a response, continued. "Do... you ever get that feeling?"

Keith wiped his forehead on a towel. "What, like, anxious?" He shrugged, "Yeah." He picked up his knife. "Actually, I've been feeling kinda like that..."

"Since the mission?" There was a click as Keith's Marmoran knife bottomed out in its sheath.

"Yeah..." The two of them locked eyes for a moment. Keith's face pretty much always looked angry, but this time Lance was able to read a mix of concern and understanding. Keith lowered his voice, glancing up towards the viewing platform. "You think we're being watched?"

"I think..." _That you sound pretty good with that lower register, for one thing._ "...we should pay a visit to the lab. Just... go for a stroll."

Lance's bayard shrank to a rectangle, smaller than a phone, and he tucked it in his pocket. Keith rested a hand on his dagger and followed him off training deck. "You notice anything specific about Pidge's behavior?" Keith's eyes swept the hallway as they walked.

"She was looking at something in the lab computer room just before we left," Lance remembered, his glance towards Keith snagging on his bicep. "I think she found a little storage thingy in there."

"Yeah?" Keith's tone betrayed his interest, but was still passably casual. "Storing what?"

"Not sure," He admitted, "But she stayed back for a second to grab some. I saw vials of something-- I didn't ask."

Keith made a noise of discontentment. "I don't like this. The lab was producing bio-weapons. God knows what she could have brought back."

"You don't think she's got some kind of parasite, do you?" Keith's expression darkened further.

"I think Zarkon's Galra have a nasty habit of making anything possible." Lance remembered that Keith was part-Galra. How much exactly was unclear, but regardless, having to fight a part of your heritage had to sting. The fact that Keith had so little love for the self-proclaimed Ruler of the Known Universe was good... but the look on his face was scary.

Of course, not as scary as the sight of Coran full-on sprinting down the hall towards them.

"Keith! Lance!" Coran skidded to a halt and stopped, vibrating like one of those springy doorstops Lance used to play with as a kid. "Thank the stars-- We need to talk."

The Paladins exchanged looks. "'Bout what?" Lance asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Coran twiddled his mustache nervously. "It's uh... well, it's about Number Five--"

Keith interjected, "She's acting suspicious, right? I knew it wasn't just me."

Lance shot him a glare. "Hey-- what am I, chopped liver?"

Coran raised both hands, "Stop! That's not the concern here." His eyes took on that wild intensity that usually meant he had some crazy idea cooking. "She's injured. And I think the two of you know why..."

**Author's Note:**

> Kind of a skim, this first chapter. Will be getting into better detail starting next chapter.


End file.
